Reproduced with permission of the Ava Helen and Linus Pauling Papers. Oregon State University Library.

Exhibit Categories:

The Search for the Molecular Helix

Two Nobel Prizes

Unique Identifier:

MMBBBN

Document Type:

Letters (correspondence)

Language:

English

Format:

application/pdf

image/tif

Physical Condition:

Good

Transcript:

October 20, 1939

Dear Warren:

Since the publication of our protein paper Dr. Niemann and I have received a number of letters regarding it, in addition to
a great many requests for reprints. I have thought that you might be interested to read some of these comments, and I am enclosing
a copy of the remarks made by Homer Adkins and by Todd. The letters have all been in this vein.

After the publication of the paper, a long rebuttal was submitted by Dr. Wrinch to Lamb for publication in the Journal. Lamb
sent it to us, in order that we might make any comments we desired. We pointed out that the rebuttal contained no new material,
except for a few statements, all of which we felt to be either incorrect or trivial. We suggested that Lamb might accept for
publication in the Journal a clear and concise rebuttal to our paper, but not one of the sort submitted. We have heard nothing
about this for some time now, and I think that perhaps no response will appear.

Wrinch's work has indeed caused a great deal of attention to be focused on the fundamental problem of protein chemistry,
that of the structure of protein molecules. I hope that the work which we are carrying on now, which is progressing nicely,
will help in the solution of this problem.

With best regards, I am

Sincerely yours,

" . . . Seldom have I read a paper which gave me such pleasure as that by Dr. Pauling and yourself on the structure of
proteins. Many of us have reached the same conclusion at which you arrived, but your exposition of the ridiculousness of the
Wrinch hypothesis was badly needed and greatly appreciated."

Homer Adkins

"My intention to write you has crystallized since the latest number of the J.A.C.S. arrived. I must say that I derived
enormous enjoyment from reading "The De-bunking of Wrinch" by Pauling and Niemann: It really was high time that somebody
put the case against the cyclol theory in definite terms, and I think that all chemists here at least will welcome it. As
far as I can see, the case is unanswerable and I shall be intrigued to see what response, if any, it will evoke from Wrinch
. . . "